The Great Westward Migration

The idea of packing your life into a box and leaving for the hills is not a new topic for this Blog.  “Your Life In A Box” http://jim-afisheyeview.blogspot.com/2011/02/your-life-in-box.html prophetically went through the basics two years ago, and as a bonus included ample reference to the better of the two movies Patrick Swayze and Jennifer Grey starred in together.  However, on the evening of March 14^th 2013 I found myself looking at a 6 x 12 U-Haul trailer that contained the sum of my family’s possessions, which were deemed worthy to travel west with us.  I imagine that several hundred years ago some other man (named something biblical) did the same thing. I’m sure Nimrod (If your going to go biblical, go big!) had a slightly different mode of transportation, a bit more travel time to contend with but decidedly less traffic. 

In the weeks between accepting the job and the western migration we whittled down our belongings. Clothing and old toys were donated, unused kitchen tools tossed, even extra bedding was disposed of.  We sold some things, gave others away.  All in all, the experience was liberating.  Along the way we visited the childhood homes and made some keepsake deposits, returned some borrowed items and picked up a few things we couldn't leave behind.  The business at hand and the socializing kept the “last” visit light and surprisingly normal. The mental survival instinct kicked in to keep us moving ahead; looking back now it is just as sad, but then it was exciting. 

So the trailer was packed with pictures and important stuff, valued by size, weight and inability to replace.  I approached the packing like the project manager I am, and had at least 7 spreadsheets.  We did our homework to find out if the cost to replace the kitchen glasses was worth the cost of the packing materials and the space in the trailer, and then completed that exercise for anything that wasn't sentimental.  It should not surprise anyone that most of what is in your kitchen is cheaper to leave behind than haul with you.

The plan called for my wife to take the kids in the van, well provisioned with snacks, movies and our travel clothing and I would follow towing the trailer.  I was excited about the prospect of the open road as much as any Hunter S. Thompson fan, but chose to medicate myself with a ridiculous amount of music and coffee over Hunters more traditional staples. We planned to drive an average of 400 miles per day, stopping at hotels with pools; Columbus OH, St. Louis MO, Tulsa OK, Amarillo TX, Albuquerque, NM with an extra day in St. Louis to break it all up.

On the morning of the 15^th, we dragged the mattress to the dumpster, dragged the kids into the van, hit the Wawa for a goodbye salute http://jim-afisheyeview.blogspot.com/2013/07/wawa-in-rear-view-albuquerque-ahead.html and jumped on the PA turnpike, westward Ho!

Driving the truck loaded down with the trailer was an exciting experience. By exciting I mean slightly terrifying.  At 70 mph, the trailer swayed when passed and pulled the nose of the truck creating a serious sway issue….at 60 the problem was less severe but I got passed more often, which wasn't necessary better.  Due to inexperience and the steep grades, western PA was the worst of it, by the time we made it to St. Louis it was smooth sailing.

We made it to Columbus OH in time to have dinner with some family and take stock of our situation.  As predicted, a trip to Wal-Mart was needed for new CB’s, snacks and a 6 pack for my wife and I….yes Wal-Mart has booze in OH.  Also in OH was my first sighting of a drive through Italian pasta fast-food place. Truly scary.

We made it to St. Louis in time for the cold rain, to turn into wet snow.  St. Louis thinks it has the world cornered on toasted ravioli….nope, and they were deep fried.  We saw the Arch, the Mississippi and the remnants of what looked like an insane St. Patrick’s day party downtown.  We spent our day off at “The City Museum”http://www.citymuseum.org/site/ in St. Louis.  Which is they absolute coolest place I have ever been, if you are ever even close to St. Louis, go.  Go in the morning if you have kids, go in the evening if you don’t.  It’s like an art museum, an super huge indoor jungle gym and a circus all in one…..really can’t stress enough how cool it is. They sell beer. Google It!

In the middle of Missouri we stopped at a “Route 66” catfish shack and were rewarded by finding Sorghum syrup….it’s like maple syrup and honey mixed together, and is made from a type of grass, similar to sugar cane.  Super sweet, thick, and most excellent on the Hushpuppies.  It was the best meal of the trip.

In Tulsa while the kids swam, I went out to find dinner.  I found a Budweiser product which in concept is sickening, and a Subway tuna fish sandwich that did make my youngest son sick, and sicker, and sickest for the next few hundred miles of the trip. This forced my older son to choose between a van wreaking of regurgitated half-digested tuna fish, or a truck that did not have a video player……after much deliberation he chose the truck. Amarillo allowed for my first Shiner Bock beer, washed down by a truly Texas sized BBQ meal.  Also in Amarillo was this store: Toot'n  Totum....any ideas what they sell there?

Our last day, our last 300 miles, into Albuquerque almost came too fast.  As we drove steadily west, gently uphill toward the mountains the landscape changed from plains, to high desert and we saw our first pronghorn, and prairie dogs.  Just inside the New Mexico border we stopped to buy “real” fireworks, and just that quick rolled over the Sandia’s into the Rio Grande Valley, and the kids saw their new home city for the first time……and then the stress became real.

2000 miles in six days isn't a blistering pace, it wasn't supposed to be.  We had an opportunity to see maybe ¾ of the county through the windshield, and wanted to enjoy it as much as possible.  It was easy to forget that the trip wasn't a vacation. It was a  migration, and life changed.